Frustrated Entrepreneur? Love the car business? Want to run your own business? Genuinely serious about making money? We have Specialist Automotive Franchise territories available across the UK please contact us for more information.

Business confidence returns to positive in the UK

The level of confidence amongst businesses in the UK was positive in the second quarter of 2017 according to the latest ICAEW Business Confidence Monitor (BCM). The data shows that the average level stood at 6.7, a huge increase from the -8.7 in Q1. This is the first time since Q2 2016 that the outlook has been good. That was around the time of the Referendum for the UK’s place in Europe.

The rise in confidence is being felt in regions all across the UK. The only region that is still negative is the West Midlands but it is only marginal. The reason for this is that businesses are expecting to be hit hard by rising costs.

The return to positive confidence brings some mixed indicators. Amongst them is the belief that input costs will continue to rise. This could translate to higher price inflation. On the other hand businesses are still anticipating an increase in sales and capital investment growth.

The ICAEW BCM for Q2 2017 also looks closer at different industries to see how much confidence there is. The majority of them are positive, with energy, water and mining as well as manufacturing and engineering leading the way. Only two industries remain negative; transport and retail/wholesale. The negative input costs are affecting both of these sectors.

At John Gibson Associates we are on hand to offer support to businesses from throughout the motor trade. The return of confidence could be very positive for them, whether they are involved in production, engineering, sales, design, or any other aspect of the industry. It may lead to the creation of new jobs and investments in training and development.

Those businesses that do create motor industry jobs can come to us for help recruiting the highest quality staff. We have a reliable approach that delivers quality, value for money, and assurances on suitability too.

If you would like to find out more about our services please get in touch.